She Teaches Leaders to Communicate
FROM ANCHOR TO TEACHER – Former WBZ-TV anchor Suzanne Bates has spent the last four years "tuning the voice of leadership" as the owner of an executive coaching and media training firm.
With the release of her new book, "Speak Like a CEO: Secrets for Commanding Attention and Getting Results," the Wellesley resident hopes to reach all levels of professionals who want to improve their communication skills and advance their careers.
"The message of the book is that each person has to find their own authentic style," Bates said. "It's about connecting with people and being real when you get up and speak – whether it's in front of employees or in the boardroom."
Bates, 49, developed her own voice during two decades before the television camera, including 13 years as an anchor and reporter at WBZ-TV. She left the station and her morning news anchor spot in December 2000 to start her own company.
"It was a great job, but I wanted to try to have my own business, to be an entrepreneur, and try something new," Bates said.
Bates Communications, Inc. coaches executives in speaking, presentations, and dealing with the media, and consults for corporations and professional services firms. The Wellesley company's clients include Citizens Bank, AT&T, Talbots, Fidelity Ventures, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, and colleges and universities.
Bates employs two staff people and last year hired former TV consumer reporter Paula Lyons of Natick and former TV anchor and health reporter Ann Conway of Sharon as consultants. She plans to release a six-CD companion set to the book in a few weeks.
"Business leaders need to learn how to develop a powerful message and deliver it in a concise, interesting way," Bates said. "We work on both content and style."
Bates decided to write her book after finding that most executives she encountered had little or no formal training in public speaking. She talked to CEOs and combined their insights with knowledge gleaned from her television interviews of other business and political leaders.
"A lot of the CEOs told me stories that helped me understand the challenges they face and how they deal with them," she said.
Boston Red Sox president and chief executive Larry Lucchino inherited a large three-ring binder from his late mentor, fellow Yale Law School graduate Bill Brockett. The journal included stories, humor, and quotes that Brockett used in speeches, and Lucchino has added to the book, according to Bates.
Speakers should take personal responsibility for the material they use, she said.
"One of the common mistakes is that some leaders rely on speechwriters completely," she said. "The problem with that is they're often not in the speech. And you need to be in the speech – the values and beliefs need to come from you."
Bates believes there is no such thing as a natural-born speaker. While some people are outgoing or extroverted, that alone does not make them good communicators.
"It's just a skill you have to learn – like learning how to solve an algebra problem or learning how to golf," she said. "I think you're comfortable when you've done it a lot."
Bates started her television career in Rockford, Ill., and said she was terrified her first time in front of the camera.
"What I learned in 20 years in television is that you get better by doing it every day," she said. "I used to watch my own videotapes at least once a week to see what I was doing. Being able to see yourself is a very important tool when you're trying to improve."